


Gladiator

by Jassy



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2010-09-01
Updated: 2010-09-13
Packaged: 2017-10-11 09:33:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 20,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/110931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jassy/pseuds/Jassy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Xander's summer in Oxnard ended a little bit differently.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Xander huddled against the rough stone wall. All around the large cavern, various demons grunted, groaned, hissed, squeaked or growled in what passed for their languages. The ceiling of the cavern glowed with a pale yellow light. Along what he termed the back wall, although direction was sort of meaningless in a round room, a trough carried relatively fresh water. Next to him lay a still figure. One that he hoped would prove to be helpful, rather then deadly, when he woke. Which, if recent experience in this place were reliable, would be any minute.

Something, at least, was going right. Spike groaned once, then sat up so suddenly that Xander had to jerk back. "What in bloody buggering hell is goin' on?!" Spike snarled, hands clutching at his skull.

Xander gave him a crooked grin. "Hey, Spike."

Spike dropped his hands and cold blue eyes focused on him. "You! You're the Slayer's boy!"

Flinching, Xander cast a quick look around to see if anything had overheard. "Please don't say that too loud. I really don't think it would be good for my general health and well being if that got out."

"And I should give a fuck...why?"

Xander straightened. "Because, Spike, we are in a really crappy situation. And I think we're going to need each other."

"Oh really?" The scarred eyebrow went up. "Can't imagine needin' _you_."__

"Then allow me to explain, Wonder Vamp. You see around you a multitude of demons, all inside a big cave." Xander waved a hand, doing his best Vanna White impression. "Everyone here was captured. Just like you and me. Now, I'm sure you're wondering why. I don't remember much from history class, but I do remember the Romans. The Colosseum and gladiators. That would be us."

"Eh? Ain't no gladiator, boy. Ain't Roman, either. 'M a vampire."

"You are now. We've been captured to participate in death matches."

Spike looked around them with a thoughtful expression. One hand dipped into the pocket of his duster and pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Absently lighting one, he blew the smoke into Xander's face. "Bollocks. Who'd be daft enough to do that?"

"Other demons, I guess. Look, don't believe me. Yet. You will. They do a sort of orientation for the new arrivals. I've seen three, including my own. And it's always the same. A big glowy ball appears near the ceiling, and it shows a sort of stadium where a fight is going on. When the fight ends, meaning when one of the combatants is dead, a face appears. It explains the rules. Should be happening any minute now. They like to give the new guys a little time to wake up and get really confused before they explain."

Spike proceeded to ignore him for the next several minutes. He went through two more cigarettes in that time. When the ball appeared, the vampire cocked his head to watch the scene play out. Two demons fought viciously, blood or ichor or whatever fluid was supposed to be in their bodies splattered over the stained arena floor. When, finally, one of the demons fell and didn't twitch, the face appeared. Moderately human, in that it had two eyes and a mouth, it boasted grey skin that looked like sandpaper, and absolutely no hair or feathers or anything. In five different languages, including English, it rattled off the litany of rules.

"Fighters, you have been chosen to participate in the games. Until your turn comes, you will wait in this room. You will eat what is provided. You will not eat or kill the other fighters until you are called upon to fight in the arena. You will fight until you are killed, or until there are no more of your group left to fight. Should you prevail, you will be released. No escape is possible. Any attempt will be punished." And that was it. The ball disappeared, leaving the newest arrivals to screech out whatever denials or defiance they chose.

Spike tossed the latest finished cigarette to the floor. "Bugger. Right whelp, explain to me why you think I would need you."

"Mutual need, Spike. See, you aren't the only vamp here. There's two more that I've seen, and I've noticed something." He shifted, his butt sore from sitting on the hard rock. "When they feed us, bowls of this yucky gruel appear in front of each demon. Seems to work for most of us. But they never provide blood. I've been here ten days, Spike. Those vamps are starting to look a little...Kate Moss-ish. So I'm willing to offer you a deal. I'll let you feed on me periodically in exchange for help. Teaching me to fight, maybe partnering me if it's allowed. Seems to be. One of the orientations showed a paired up team fighting against a single demon."

"Just one problem with that. Bastard said no eatin' the others."

"Yeah, well, I doubt they'd object to a little discreet snacking. And they don't hurt you if you try, they just knock you out again."

"Right. I'll think about it. Till then, piss off."

"Whatever. Let me know when you decide." Closing his eyes, Xander leaned against the wall again. He heard the rustle of leather on stone as Spike moved, then booted footsteps moving away. He cracked an eye to check his watch. It was a cheap digital thing but it nonetheless told the time and date, and hadn't yet been broken. He'd been there ten long days, and only God knew how much longer he'd stay. Or how much longer until his 'group' was deemed large enough, or the one currently fighting small enough, to force him to fight. What he did know was that if the vampire refused his deal, he'd be toast pretty damn quick.

According to his watch, Spike was gone for about three hours. Xander occasionally tracked where he was, and always found him speaking to a different demon. Gathering information; or more likely, trying to make a better deal. But eventually the vampire strode back to his little spot by the wall. "Right, whelp. Ya got yourself a deal. Get your arse up and let's see what you've got."

Xander climbed stiffly to his feet. "Xander. My name is Xander. You've tried to kill me before, the least you could do is know my name."

"Don't bloody care about your name, whelp. Now let's see what you've got." Spike braced himself, a position Xander had seen Buffy take when preparing to fight.

"I don't 'got' anything. I survived through luck, blindly whaling away at whatever was attacking me, and help."

Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Spike sighed heavily. "This is gonna be a long fucking night. Okay, we'll start with the basics. Let's work on your stance."

*

Fifteen days in the Below, and Xander noticed something odd. "Hey, Spike, look." He offered his arm, where just a couple hours ago there had been a nasty bruise from training. Now there was only the nasty yellow of an almost healed bruise. Spike raised his eyebrow sarcastically. It was a talent Xander hoped to develop. "That was from this morning, Spike. Human here, I don't heal that fast."

"Huh." The eyebrow went back down as Spike thought. "Come to think, you ain't as stiff and sore as you should be. Ain't gettin' weak, neither. Humans ain't that hardy. You only eat once...."

Their eyes locked. "It's that slop. The food. There's something in it, some kind of magic to keep us healthy."

Spike nodded slowly. "I'd say so. Been drivin' you pretty hard, an' you're still in decent condition. Gonna try something. C'mere." Spike jerked him close and lifted up his shirt. Without warning, he ran one sharp fingernail down the center of Xander's chest, leaving a long, bloody scratch. Blood trickled for a few seconds but the scratch closed up as they watched. First to a scab, but after about ten minutes, the scab fell off, leaving behind a shiny pink scar.

"Wow. Uh, that's doesn't seem right. I mean, I can see that they'd want us in working condition, but why...."

"I think it's just you. Human an' all, whatever mojo they put in that stuff don't seem to work like that on anyone else. The Vargresh over there, he got hisself banged up a couple days ago. Still banged up, an' I seen him eat. I think we should keep this quiet."

"Good idea. Do you think, maybe, this means you can take more blood? Maybe a little everyday, instead of every other day?"

"Worth a try." Turning so that his body blocked the view of the rest of the room, Spike sank his fangs into his wrist. Xander flinched but let him. He needed to keep Spike healthy if Spike was going to help keep _him_ healthy. Just at the point where he was getting lightheaded, Spike withdrew. Xander sank to the floor. The lightheadedness vanished while they watched the puncture wounds heal. He gave Spike a brief nod to show that he was fine.__

"Right. Get up, an' we'll get back to it."

Training wasn't his favorite thing in the world to do, but he had to admit, he was getting better. Spike was a surprisingly patient instructor, carefully walking him through new moves, and correcting him with only a little sarcasm when he messed up. He was proud to say that he sometimes managed to land a hit on the vampire. Perhaps not a huge achievement for someone else, but it was a big deal to him. It gave him some hope of surviving this.

*

Twenty days there, ten since Spike had come. His watch was proving to be a useful thing, helping to keep from getting too disoriented in the constant, unending light. Without it, he'd have lost all sense of time. It was now night. At least, it was in the Above. Spike's sleep patterns had quickly become messed up, and he kept similar hours to Xander. They were settling in against their section of floor to get some rest after another hard day of training. It was normally the time when Spike would, in a quiet voice, teach him the weaknesses and strengths of the other demons. Sometimes he'd quiz Xander on past explanations. That night, he did something different. "So, whelp, how'd you get taken, then?"

"Same as you, I guess. Got knocked out with a spell and woke up here."

"No, I mean, how'd you get targeted? I've asked around, and the story's always the same. Everyone here had been in some kind of fight right before, and won. So?"

"Oh." Xander shifted a little, adjusting the button down shirt he was using as a pillow. "Well, I was.... I took off, after graduation. I wanted to see a little bit of the world, or at least a little bit of the country, before I came back and settled into lower middle class drudgery. I didn't get far. Only to Oxnard, where my car broke down. I had to get a job at this club to pay for repairs. It wasn't a bad place – decent people and not super dirty. I rented a room nearby, and I didn't mind the work. I met somebody. We kind of hit it off, so I accepted a date. We were walking back to my place when a vamp jumped us. It went for hi – my date. Even away from Sunnydale I still always carried a stake. I managed to dust the vamp and walked my date home. Not how I thought things were gonna go, but he, uh, my date was pretty freaked. Next thing I know, I'm waking up here."

"Bloody typical. Boy gets lucky with a bit of wood, and suddenly everyone thinks he's a bloody fighter," Spike groused. Running out of smokes had left him pretty cranky. Running out of whiskey had only made that worse. The littlest thing could make him bitch under his breath for hours, if Xander couldn't distract him.

"What about you? How'd you get taken? I would have thought...I mean, isn't Drusilla, like, psychic or something?"

"Dru left me. Said I was all obsessed with the Slayer and took off with a Chaos demon. Have you ever seen a Chaos demon? They got horns like a bloody great deer, and they just drip with slime. I was makin' my way back to kill Slutty and got into a bit of a brawl. Naturally I won," he said, with no trace of modesty whatsoever. "But it landed me here."

Xander rolled his head to the side so he could see Spike. The vampire was laying on his back, one arm under his head, the other flung over his eyes. "I'm sorry. About Dru, I mean. You guys are so in love, I thought you'd be together forever."

"Apparently not."

"I was jealous of you, you know. Not that I would ever have admitted that. But...you had this beautiful girlfriend who adored you, you're this super cool, powerful vampire. You scared Buffy! And when you guys fought, you never lost. Didn't win, but you didn't lose, either. Way cooler than Deadboy."

"That what you call Peaches?"

"Yup. That or Hairboy. I think it really bugged him. Hard to tell, since he only has one facial expression. Kinda constipated looking, y'know?"

A sharp bark of laughter rang out. "You ain't near as dozy as people think."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Xander said dryly. "You think we'll get out of this?"

"Sure. Just gotta wait for the right opportunity, is all. Don't fret none."

Taking comfort from the lie, Xander flipped onto his stomach and settled in for some sleep.

*

They were moved the next day. A tunnel appeared in the wall, and the glow ball instructed everyone to move down it. Xander stuck like glue to Spike's side, heart hammering in his throat. The tunnel led to another cavern, but this one was divided into smaller rooms. Cells, really, since each one had a locking cage door. Spike picked one at random and jerked him inside. The door slammed shut with a very solid clang.

Their cell was moderately more comfortable than the holding cavern, in that it had a straw pallet on the floor and an individual basin of water. That was all the exploration he had time for before a group of the gray skinned demons entered. One went to each cell and spoke. Xander fixed eyes blazing with hatred on the one standing in front of them.

Unfazed, the demon spoke. "Here you will stay until you are called to fight. You will be taken by guard to the arena. Do not attempt to fight the guard or you will be killed. Do not attempt to escape or you will be killed. Do not cause any trouble of any kind or you will be killed." That was it. Speech delivered, the demon walked away.

"Git," Spike muttered.

Xander checked out the water. A small sip showed that it was just as clean and fresh as that found in the cavern. He wasn't very thirsty. The slop that he was fed seemed to keep him hydrated. But he was dirty. In the relative privacy of the cell, he felt a little safer in stripping down to his boxers. Using his tank top, he managed a decent enough sponge bath, ridding himself of the worst of the stale sweat and dirt that clung to him. The basin kept refilling every time it got low, so he went ahead and rinsed out both of his shirts and his boxers. Spike had settled on the pallet and didn't seem to be paying any attention anyway. Dressed only in his dirty cargo pants, with his other clothes laid out to dry, Xander sat down beside him. "Now what?"

"Now we wait. While they're movin' us to and from will be the best time to make a break for it. Might hafta make it through a few fights first, get the lay of the land. You'll do fine. Got some decent trainin' now, and they ain't gonna pit you against nothin' too tough. Not at first. Gotta build up to the really impressive fights, yeah?"

"That is oddly reassuring."

*

His luck as the zeppo continued to hold true. Of the two of them, Xander was called first to fight. A guard came and literally dragged him from their cell. He wasn't ashamed to admit to his terror, but he stiffened legs that felt like jelly and walked where the guard directed. He tried to make a note of his surroundings so he could tell Spike. There was little to notice, though. Once out of the cell cavern, he was led down a corridor that was completely straight. No doors, no boulders, bends or turnoffs.

At the end was a stall. He was shoved in and the doorway vanished. He could hear what sounded like a huge crowd through the wall in front of him. Then the wall vanished and an invisible force propelled him forward.

He looked around as he was forced to walk into the stadium that he'd seen in each orientation. Thousands of demons surrounded the arena. The walls were easily twenty feet high and appeared completely smooth. Impossible to climb. The sound was deafening. Then suddenly it wasn't. The spectators got very quiet. On the other side of the arena, a section of wall vanished, revealing his opponent. About five feet tall and just as big around, it looked like a giant blueberry. With tentacles, four eyes, and two stubby little legs.

Xander cast his mind frantically back for what Spike had told him about these. The whole body was soft, especially the eyes. The stubby legs made it a slow walker, but the long tentacles moved whip-fast and were tipped with claws.

That was all he had time to recall. Apparently deciding they weren't going fast enough, the invisible force pushed him and the blueberry demon into the center of the arena. Blueberry attacked, tentacles lashing out at him. Xander jumped back out of reach.

He circled it, getting behind where it couldn't see. It turned, and he noticed how it stumbled. Either hurt or clumsy, he didn't know. He didn't care, either. He got behind it again and gave it a spin kick to the back. There was a squeal and it toppled forward. Tentacles flailed wildly, preventing him from stomping on it.

Taking a chance, Xander lunged forward and managed to catch one of the tentacles. He turned quickly and yanked with his whole body. There was a wet sucking sound, another squeal, and Xander stumbled a little with a detached tentacle in his hands. He did the same for the other three tentacles. It earned him a cut on the face and one on his belly, but with the tentacles removed he was able to safely drive his booted foot into the jell-o soft body until it stopped moving.

The force came back, pushing him back to the stall where he started while the crowd renewed its roar. The guard returned and dragged him back to the cell. Spike caught him when he was thrown in.

"You won," Spike observed with the barest hint of relief in his voice.

"Yeah." Xander straightened, gingerly prodding the belly wound. Deep as it had been, it was half-healed already. "Giant blueberry. Tore off the tentacles and kicked it a lot."

"Good job. Tell me what you saw."

Eyes closed in concentration, Xander relayed every detail he could.

"Hell. I soddin' hate magic users. Never got the balls to fight you square on." Spike shook his head. "Gonna hafta keep waitin' for a chance. They'll let down their guard at some point."

"Sort of figured." Xander sat down on the pallet. The adrenaline rush was wearing off, leaving him tired and shaky.

To his surprise, Spike dug out a bandana, got it wet, and sat down next to him to start cleaning his wounds. He was very gentle about it, and finished up with an awkward pat on his shoulder. Absurdly grateful for the small kindness, Xander flashed a small smile. "Thanks."

Spike grunted.

*

The two month mark was noted for the addition of fresh fighters filling the empty cells. Xander watched through the bars of the cage door. "Fuckers lied. They keep replenishing the ranks, our 'group' won't ever have an ultimate winner."

"False hope to keep us fightin'," Spike muttered.

Xander flopped listlessly onto the pallet and closed his eyes.

*

Four months, countless fights, and still no sign of a chance to escape. But he and Spike had settled on a routine. During the day, they fought. Never at the same time, but they could count on two or three fights apiece. They would tend each other's wounds as best they could in between fights.

At night, Xander would chug both their bowls of slop. By morning, even his worst injuries would be healed. Some of the healing properties carried over to Spike, as long as the vampire fed as soon as Xander finished.

Fed and cleaned up as best they could, they would curl up on the pallet. Spike would cover them with the duster to trap in Xander's body heat. There, as comfortable as they could get, they talked. About everything. Movies, books, music, everything they'd seen, done or even heard of. The only taboo subject was the arena. Neither of them wanted to rehash the increasingly violent fights that were becoming their whole existence.

Snuggled up tight to the vampire, Xander found his mind turning to his past. "My dad's a drunk, you know. So's my mom."

"No fun livin' with, I'll bet."

"Not so much. But...it wasn't always like that. I can remember when I was little, they were good parents. I mean, my dad was stern, but not mean. Really into the whole boys don't cry deal. Then he lost his job. He started drinking and just never stopped. Mom tried. Still does, sometimes. I think she just got so tired. The 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em' thing. She can hold a job still. He can't. Makes him meaner every year."

"Ever smack you round?"

"Nah. Just ran me down, every chance he got. I stopped being his son and started being the 'fuckin' loser' my mom dropped. I'd like to hate him."

"Sounds like you got reason enough. Why don't you?"

"Because I can still remember when he took me to a baseball game. I still have the hat he bought me. And there was this one time when this kid a couple years older than me started a fight. I lost, but dad patched me up and said he was proud of me. I went down fighting and didn't just give up. I hate what he let himself turn into, but I can't hate him," Xander explained.

"Still your da, under the booze and bitterness."

"Yeah. What about you? What was your father like?"

"Quiet. Scholar, you know. Mind buried so far into the past, barely knew he had a son. He died when I was ten of the influenza. It killed regular back then, and he weren't robust to start. He was a good man, though. Treated mum alright. Probably where I got my literary ambition from. No talent, mind. But plenty of ambition....Bah! 'Nuff of this broody crap. Best get some sleep, yeah?" Spike patted his back briskly and settled in.

"Kay."

*

Another night, after another day of fighting. Spike had been dragged back to their cell after the last fight, with his insides hanging on his outside. Xander had pushed them back in and cut his wrist with a jagged fingernail. Blood had dripped into Spike's slackly open mouth. Eventually enough got in that Spike started sucking on his own. He'd almost drained Xander. Twice, in fact. Once before and once after their slop appeared. But his belly had healed. They didn't talk that night.

*

Seven months of fighting, and it was Xander's turn to be dragged back, too injured to walk. Spike straightened his broken leg and kept a severed artery pinched off for an hour until the healing slop came. Then he force fed it to Xander so he wouldn't bleed out. Then held him while silent tears ran down his face.

*

Hurt again, all the skin burned away from his back by the acidic blood of the demon he'd killed. The slop worked slower this time, maybe because some of the blood was still on him, constantly burning away the new skin trying to grow until Spike could get it washed away.

Huddled under the badly abused duster, Xander pressed his face into Spike's neck. It was the closest to privacy he could get anymore. "I'm tired, Spike," he whispered. "Tired of fighting, tired of hurting."

Spike rocked him slowly. "I know, pet. Sick of it, too. Never thought I'd say that, but it's true."

"Feels like I'll never feel anything nice again. Gonna just hurt, and hurt, and hurt, until I die on that dirt floor."

"Shh, no. Don't talk like that. You'll feel nice things again, pet. Promise."

"Liar. We're never gonna get out, never. And it'll be one hurt after another, and never anything good."

"I can give you good things. Make you feel nice, if you let me."

"How? Gonna magic up a nice hot bath? Maybe ice cream or a pizza?"

"Thinking of something...else. Feel, pet. Just feel." Spike slid one hand down Xander's chest to the waist of his seriously tattered cargos. A flick of his fingers had them open, and he was closing his hand on Xander's limp flesh.

It didn't stay limp for long. His libido, suppressed by constant stress and fear, sat up and yowled. It never occurred to Xander to protest. It felt too good, and he needed something to feel good. A few expert strokes made him hard. A few more had him crying out into Spike's neck as he shot over his fist.

"See? Can still feel nice, even here," Spike whispered.

"Shut up." Xander lifted his head to press a desperate kiss to Spike's lips. He fumbled at Spike's jean as his mouth ate at Spike's. The vampire was already hard and started humping into Xander's pumping fist as soon as he touched him.

When Spike spurted over his hand, Xander released his mouth. While Spike panted for unneeded air, Xander lifted sticky fingers to his mouth and licked. "Sweet. Better than slop."

"Should ruddy well hope so," Spike muttered.

Smiling a little, Xander kissed him softly then buried his face once again in the crook of Spike's neck. If he tried really hard, he could pretend that they were somewhere else – just for a little while.

*

Back bowed, Xander came into the cool mouth surrounding his length, his loud moans tipping Spike over the edge. He swallowed frantically, not willing to miss a drop of the only decent tasting substance he had access to. When they'd calmed, they shifted on the pallet to kiss for a while. Xander rolled onto his back, Spike curling around him, head pillowed on his chest.

Spike was tracing idle patterns on his sweat-slick belly, finger crossing over but not following the scars. "Pisses me off, you know."

"What does?"

"Every tiny little scratch you get, you scar. Even where I bite you, and vamp bites don't scar when they heal, usually."

"Doesn't matter. Unless it's a really big turn off for you?" He looked down, body stilling at that alarming thought. It would be a bad thing if that happened.

"Nah," Spike dismissed easily enough for Xander to relax again. "Just makes me fuckin' furious, is all. Such a pretty boy, shouldn't have to have scars. Shouldn't be in this fuckin' place to start. Wish I knew a way to get us out of here."

"Me too. Where would you take me, if we could go anywhere?"

"Huh. Lot's of places, pet. World is a big place, with plenty of things to see."

"But where first? I've never been further from Sunnydale than Oxnard. Tell me. About somewhere beautiful."

"Oh, lot's of beautiful places. Suppose first place I'd take you is south. Down to Brazil, maybe. The forest there is so lush, so rich with life. Should see the trees and plants. So green, even at night, they put emeralds to shame. And the animals! Alligators and birds and monkeys...." Xander fell asleep listening to him, dreaming of hot nights filled with sounds and colors that he'd never experienced, but that Spike was able to paint for him.

*

Perched on Spike's butt, Xander drove his thumbs deep into the corded muscles of Spike's neck and shoulders. Vampires, it seemed, could strain muscles. "Did you know, I was on the swim team for a while?"

"Hmm, no. Can't say as you mentioned it."

"I was. The team had gotten really good my junior year. Had a real good shot at taking state. But something was killing them off, starting with the best. We figured something Hellmouth-y, considering whatever it was, was taking off their skin. Like, completely. Every other part was gone, but the piles of skin looked like body suits."

"An' you joined up for that?" Spike asked incredulously.

"Well, I'm a good swimmer. Figured I could go undercover, get the inside scoop on what was going on. I think I watched one too many spy movies, actually."

"Didja?" Spike glanced over his shoulder, eyebrow raised.

"Oh boy, did I ever! Turns out, the coach and the school nurse were giving the team steroids of some kind through the steam in the sauna. Turned the team into these big, man-eating fish monsters. Had to spend some time in the hospital, since I'd done a couple sessions in the sauna. Team wasn't dead, they were fish. They got away after eating the coach, though."

"Huh. Glad you ain't a fish, pet. You'd smell awful."

"Yeah. Not a big fish guy, me. I like beef. Or pork. Chicken, in a pinch. Fish? Kinda ick."

Spike chuckled, bouncing Xander a little. "I'm fond of Xander juice, m'self."

Xander leaned down to nip his ear. "Which kind? The white or the red?"

Spike rolled over under him. "Both. But I'll be having a bit of the white, at the moment." He wormed down until Xander was straddling his head and opened his mouth.

*

"Dru had a lot of funny turns. Well, she likely still does. She was right more than she was wrong, so I'd learned early to listen to her."

Xander rubbed his bearded cheek against the smooth shoulder under his head. "I'm sensing a 'but' coming."

"Too right, there's a but. Was, oh, 'bout 1950 or so. She got it into her head that there was something in Egypt that we needed. Dragged me all over that soddin' desert, promisin' unearthly delights. Let me tell ya, having to dig down under the sand when the sun come up every day was not fun." He shuddered at the memory. "Fuckin' hot, is what it was. An' ya had to dig deep, or the wind'd come up and blow off your coverin'."

"Ouch and double ouch." Xander winced, thinking of all that sand, HOT sand, getting into all kinds of bad places. He barely repressed a shudder of his own.

"Ain't that the bloody truth," Spike said fervently. "So we're traipsing all over the desert, eating the occasional traveler when we could get 'em, and she brings me to a tomb. One they ain't found yet. So I start gettin' a little excited, right? Thinking of all sorts of gold and such buried with the poor sod inside. Get the bloody thing open, and there ain't nothin' there but bones. No gold, no jewels. Not even a scrap of papyrus with a spell on it. Wanna know what Dru said?"

"What?"

"Said the priests never got round to puttin' the stuff in. Oopsie!" he mocked, doing one of the worst female impressions Xander had ever heard.

"You're joking." Xander lifted his head, lips twitching.

"Nope. She really said that. Dragged me back to Cairo, an' from there back to Europe. I was a mite irritated with her, as you can imagine, so I made her come to the States. For a while. We went back after I got the Slayer in New York."

Xander giggled. Annoyed, Spike rolled them over in order to better tickle him.

*

Faced off against a vampire in the arena, Xander felt his heart thudding painfully fast in his chest. The creature in front of him was horrid. Paper thin skin stretched tight over bone, fanged mouth gaping in a death's head grin, and eyes with only bloodlust in them. This, this mindless thing, was what Spike would be right now, if not for him. What he would become if Xander fell to this thing today. And he was already hurting from his earlier fight, a long gouge down his arm not fully healed yet, leaving his arm barely functioning. Not to mention the scent of blood seemed to be driving the starved vampire even more insane.

Starvation hadn't slowed the creature down any. Either that, or the smell of blood had lent it the speed it needed. Xander dodged and twisted and kicked, but he couldn't hold it off of him for long. It lunged at him, catching him around the knees and taking him to the ground. He kicked desperately and managed to catch it in the head. The blow stunned it enough for Xander to regain his feet.

Looking down on it, Xander tried to think of a way to dust it. He had no weapons of any kind, and not enough strength to twist its head off. Matches never ended until one of the fighters was dead. Not just too injured to fight, but dead. Still, too injure to fight was a good start. He stood on its back, reached down, and savagely wrenched one arm back and up. He felt the crack as the shoulder was dislocated. Heard the mindless scream of pain. Repeated the action with the other arm, then shifted his attention to the legs. Holding down one thrashing leg with one of his own legs, he kicked as hard as he could at the ankle. The bone snapped like a dried twig.

When the other leg was similarly ruined, Xander rolled the creature onto its back and knelt on its chest. The crazed eyes locked on him, some semblance of sanity returning. There seemed to be pleading in them, but for what he wasn't sure. "Tell me. Tell me how to end this for you. You're too hurt to kill me, you won't heal any time soon, and they won't let us out of here until one of us is dead. Tell me how to kill you."

The gaping mouth worked for a minute, finally producing sound other than animal grunts and screams. "Heart. Tear it out," it rasped.

Xander looked down at the wasted chest he knelt on. Vampires, he knew, were very soft when it came to wood penetrating flesh. Part of the magic that governed their existence. In all other ways, they were tough damn creatures. He would have to crush the protecting ribs enough that he could dig in to reach the unmoving organ. "Alright." He stood up. With dull, mechanical movements, he kicked. Over and over, until the bones were pulverized. He knelt again and applied jagged fingernails to flesh. Flesh that looked like paper but was tough as leather. With all the strength in his arms, he wrenched the skin apart. Dug his hand into the cool, slightly wet interior, feeling shards of bone scraping his knuckles. Gripped the heart and yanked it out.

The crowd went wild as he stood there, dust clinging to the small amount of blood staining his hands. All that was left. That damned invisible force pushed at him, made him walk back to his stall, where a guard waited to take him back to his cell. Spike looked at him from his seat on their pallet. Wordless, Xander held out his hands.

Spike got up and guided him to the basin of water. Forced him to wash the gore away, the water turning red, then pink, and back to clear as it was replaced. "That weren't me, pet. Won't never be me. You take care of me, yeah? Keep me nice and strong."

Xander leaned back into him, feeling the proof of that in the lean muscles and strong arms that surrounded him. "I want out, Spike. This isn't how it's supposed to be."

"I know."

The door opened again, and Spike was yanked out, snarling and spitting. Xander watched him go, kneeling on the floor by the door. While he was gone, Xander saw a new group being brought in. Fresh fighters, not weakened or crazed yet. Keeping the games going strong. He tilted his head back and laughed bitterly.

*

One year they'd been there. Five months as lovers. Xander stood in his stall, idly contemplating his body. His tank top was gone, the last shreds lost long ago. His pants were barely hanging in there, ripped in more places than not, and stained beyond telling what the original color had been. His button down shirt, used more as a pillow than anything, was still back in the cell in an effort to prolong its life. His boots were on the verge of falling off his feet, the leather eaten away by wear and the corrosive effects of some of the demon's blood. It left him nearly naked, showing all of his scars clearly to the spectators. They always roared louder for him than any of his opponents. His hair was long, hanging down over his eyes. He had a beard, since anything knife like that Spike had once had on him had been taken when he was.

"I," he told the wall, "look like some sort of inbred mountain man, I bet." He scratched at his face, hating the itchy, scraggly mess of hair he could feel. "The kind that eats hikers, and does naughty things to their dogs." The wall silently agreed. He glanced at his watch and sighed, thinking wistfully of the sunset that he was missing. But at least it would be the last fight of the day.

The muffled roar of the crowd suddenly swelled, becoming nearly as loud as it was when he was in the arena. A moment later the wall vanished, letting him walk out. His eyes met Spike's and widened. He was expected to fight Spike? His lover? And he knew the bastards in charge knew about them, the guards had pulled them from each other's arms often enough.

Hooking his thumbs in his waistband, Xander strolled leisurely across the dirt floor of the arena. Spike met him in the middle with a jaunty smile. "Hey, Spike."

"Pet." The crowd went dead silent, no doubt waiting for the carnage to begin. "Not too bright, are they?"

"What, you mean expecting two lovers to battle to the death? I'd have to say that indicates a certain lack of brain power," Xander agreed.

 

"Wonder how long they'll wait before realizing we ain't gonna fight?"

"Well...whoops!" Xander found himself flung the remaining foot's distance, colliding with Spike. "Not long, apparently. Guess they really want some kind of show."

"Let's give 'em one," Spike muttered, lips catching at Xander's. Their arms wrapped around each other tightly as they kissed, making it wet and sloppy for their audience. Angry sounding mutters started among the spectators, prompting the force to try and pull them apart. They clung even tighter, resisting as the force became painful, then abruptly ceased. Xander cracked open an eye, seeing the glowing ball form above their heads. The face of one of the bastards in charge appeared, glaring down at them.

"This is unacceptable. You will fight or you will die."

Spike lifted his head long enough to glare right back. "Piss off, wanker!"

The demon's face flushed to gunmetal, and the ball vanished. Xander saw a different section of the surrounding wall disappear to admit two of the guards. "Spike," he whispered.

"One each, love. Try to break the neck. Look like rock, but they got soft skin," Spike whispered back.

They waited until the guards were a couple feet away, then sprang at them. The guards were taken completely by surprise, apparently not expecting any sort of resistance. Xander tackled the one on the left, tumbling to the ground, and punching before they'd even hit. They rolled, Xander pushing them so that he could land on top, then grabbed the guard's head and twisted hard and fast. He heard the by now familiar crack of snapping bones and the body went limp. He bounded to his feet to see Spike with his fangs sunk deep into the neck of the other guard. A moment later, Spike was flung the lifeless body away and spat. "Fuckin' disgustin'!"

"You better rinse your mouth out really good if you intend to bite me ever again. What happened with the neck breakage?" Xander demanded. He knew damned well that Spike could do that even easier than he could.

"Not the time, pet. Now's the time to run." Spike grabbed his hand and hauled him towards the opening in the wall. Above them, the angry muttering had turned into terrified screams, and a panicked attempt to leave.

Half expecting the wall to close up again, Xander braced himself for impact. An impact that didn't come as they ran into the tunnel. "Where are we going?"

"Anywhere but here. Different tunnel, got to lead somewhere but the cells. Bound to be a way topside. Shut up and run." Xander ran.

They went through several smaller caverns, scattering more of the gray demons in their wake. A few of the braver or more clearheaded ones tried to block their path, but were unprepared for the ferocity with which they were met. The pair of them were leaving dead and/or mutilated bodies behind.

The general direction of the tunnels they took seemed to lead up. What was odd to Xander, was that they only encountered the grey skinned demons. But the spectators had been a largely mixed crowd, with different species of demons all watching. He distinctly remembered seeing them all trying to run, so where were they? Were he and Spike using the wrong tunnels to leave, or were there multiple exits? He couldn't exactly stop and ask for directions, though. All he could do was run behind Spike and pray.

The smell of fresh, pine-scented air seemed to indicate his prayers being answered. They rounded a corner to find themselves in another cave. A cave that opened out into forest. A cave that was filled with about ten armed guards, all of whom looked pissed off. Xander bent slightly at the waist, breathing heavily and eyeing the guards. These were not the panicked, disorganized type that they'd scattered and mangled during their flight. Nor, he suspected, would they be taken by surprise like the pair in the arena. They were clearheaded, and more importantly, armed with long, metal-tipped wooden staffs. "What now?" he panted.

"Got no experience with weapons, do ya? Let me handle this lot." Not winded in the slightest, being as how he didn't breathe, Spike advanced. Stalking slowly, head down, he closed the distance between himself and the guards. Xander could see them tense the closer Spike got. Suddenly darting to the left, Spike yanked the staff from one guard, and the fight was on.

Xander hung back, keeping his eye on the tunnel behind him, and the one to the left that the guards must have come through. He didn't want reinforcements to come in and surprise Spike. The fight seemed to be going in his favor, his staff whirling as much as he was, colliding with the others' staffs and sometimes their heads. One went down, then two more. About the time that Spike took out the sixth, Xander noticed the first couple that had gone down stirring. Spike wasn't killing them, only knocking them out. And they were recovering fast.

Flexing his fingers, Xander let himself get angry. Really, really angry. Then he waded in, snapping the necks of the downed guards. Whether it would actually kill them as he thought didn't matter. If it didn't, they would still be a long time recovering. Between them, Spike and Xander took care of all ten guards. Spike twirled the staff above his head exultantly. "Yes! Think about that, you tossers, next time you wanna kidnap William the Bloody!"

Xander snatched up one of the fallen staffs for himself. "Enough crowing, let's get out of here! I want some distance before they remember how to do that knock out spell."

"Right you are, pet." Linking their free hands, they slipped out of the cave, half-expecting another ambush to be waiting. Xander felt a moment of dizziness. When it passed, he looked around. The cave...was gone. They stood on some sort of trail, surrounded by trees. He poked the staff back to where the mouth of the cave should be. Nothing. "Portal," Spike muttered.

"Huh?" Xander glanced at him, still waving the staff.

"It was a portal, pet. Where ever that was," Spike pointed at where his staff was waving uselessly, "was somewhere else. Don't think it was another dimension. We'd have been knocked flat crossin' over, if it were. Probably some other part of the country. Not too hard to set up a portal between different places in the same dimension."

"So, the caverns could be in, like, Russia, but with entrances in all different places?"

"Yeah. I wondered how they got so many demons in one place all the time. Makes sense."

Xander nodded, glancing up at the sky. Where ever they were, the sun was recently set. He really hoped they were in the US, and not some other country where they didn't speak English and also didn't have a McDonald's. He'd suffered enough, thanks. "Where to?"

"Follow the trail. Gotta lead somewhere."

Shrugging, Xander let him pick a direction to walk and walked with him. Hard as he tried, he couldn't find anything sinister in their surroundings. It was peaceful, with insects buzzing and the sound of small creatures rustling in the underbrush. After nearly an hour, Spike halted. "What?"

"I smell...fire. Campfire, I'm guessin'. Quiet now, follow me." Very carefully, Spike crept down the trail ahead of him. Doing his best to be silent, Xander followed more slowly. They rounded a bend in the trail, and the path widened out into a clearing. One that contained a campfire, as Spike had thought. Along with campers, laid out in sleeping bags next to the fire. Spike held up a hand, halting him, and continued on alone.

Huddling up next to a tree, Xander watched his lover sneak up to the sleeping bags and peek at the occupants. Apparently satisfied, he walked to the other side of the fire to grab the two big hiking packs laying on the ground. He waved at Xander, beckoning him to follow. Gulping, Xander gave the sleeping pair a wide berth, catching up to Spike. The trail continued on the other side of the clearing, and they didn't speak until they were well down it.

"Let's see what's in the goody bags, eh?" Smiling cheerfully, Spike knelt down to rifle through them. "Eh, now this is nice. Here, pet, put that on. Gettin' chilly, ain't it?"

Xander caught the flannel shirt tossed at him, gratefully slipping it on. It was a little big, suggesting the owner was a large man. One he hoped would stay sleeping, and not come charging after the thieves who'd taken his stuff. Several more pieces of clothing were tossed aside, including a pair of jeans. Warring only briefly with himself, Xander kicked off his boots, dropped the rags of his cargo pants, and pulled them on. Like the shirt, they were a little big, but stayed up. He put his boots back on, and knelt beside Spike to see what else the packs contained.

Bottled water, power bars, and trail mix were welcome sights. As was the glossy map, marking various hiking trails and campsites. The unfortunate pair had thoughtfully circled the one they were using, giving them a starting point. According to the legend on the map, they were a day's (or night's) hike away from the parking lot. They were also, apparently, in the California State park, which worked well for them.

"Right, here's what we're gonna do. Dipshit back there was kind enough to provide all this, plus his wallet and car keys." Spike jangled the keys in Xander's face happily. "Gonna hurry on down to the car park, nab his car, an' be on our merry way before dipshit wakes up. Wanna get some distance between us an' that portal."

"Distance is of the good. Let's get us some of that." Most of the clothes were dumped, some of them clearly belonging to a woman, and the food, water, map, and wallet transferred over to one pack. Spike shouldered it, and they moved out at a brisk pace.

Xander was in good condition. After the last year, he was in really good condition. But he was also used to sleeping at this time, and had gone through two fights before they escaped. Then the escape itself, with the running and more fighting. Add all that up, and he was tired. He refused to complain or ask to slow down, because he was just as worried as Spike about pursuers. When he started stumbling more than walking, Spike slipped an arm around his waist but didn't slow. The fast pace brought them to the parking lot an hour before dawn. Half a dozen different vehicles were there, and Spike held up the remote. Xander groaned under his breath when a giant yellow S.U.V. lit up, signaling its unlocked state.

Spike didn't look any happier than he was. Not bothering to hide his disgusted sneer, he boosted Xander in. "Fuckin' ugly thing, ain't it?" he muttered. "Bloody yellow piece of shit." He continued to bitch to himself as he crossed around to the driver's side and started it up.

Leaning back in the leather seat, Xander blearily watched the scenery go by as Spike drove them out of the park at a sedate speed. Once past the ranger station and on the open highway, Spike floored it. "Where we going, Spike?"

"Little bit of a town, 'bout twenty miles up. We'll ditch this ugly fucker, find a place to hole up for the day. 'Bout the time dipshit is reporting his missing gear, we'll be stealin' another car to get us somewhere else. L.A. most likely. Just rest, pet. Let me take care of things, yeah?" Spike squeezed his knee, then left his hand there. Xander let his lay over top of it.

"Kay. Spike?"

"Yeah, pet?"

"I'm really glad we got out."

"Me too, pet. Me too."


	2. 2

The small town was kind enough to provide a motel. Spike parked the ugly vehicle out of sight of the main office. The wallet from dipshit was pulled out of the pack and stuffed into one of the duster's pockets before Spike fastened it to cover his bare chest. "Right. I'm gonna go get us a room. Wait here 'till I get back." Xander blinked blearily at him and nodded. He woke up a little when Spike left, feeling edgy without the vampire in sight. Five minutes later, though, Spike returned to escort him to their room at the back.

The room was small, the furnishings old, but clean. Xander wanted to just fall onto the sagging mattress for a few hours, but Spike put a hand out to stop him. "Spiiiike, I wanna sleep!"

"I know. But we're gonna need more supplies than what we got. We look awful, pet. Need to clean up, look a little more presentable, or lots of people are gonna notice us. Got us a bit of time before we gotta worry about being chased by the filth, but I'd rather be ready to leave at sundown. Passed one a them Wal-drug places a couple blocks back. Take the credit card, an' go get us stuff. Soap and whatnot. Shirt for me, if you can find one. More food for you. Okay?"

Xander scrubbed at his face briskly, trying to wake himself up. "Okay, yeah. I get you. I'll be back as quick as I can." He accepted the wallet from Spike, as well as the quick hard kiss, and slipped out the door. The sun would be up in just a few minutes, he saw, and quickened his pace to a trot.

The drug store was deserted except for the ancient looking clerk, who gave him a brief, disinterested glance before going back to her magazine. Xander grabbed a basket and started down the aisles. Soap, shampoo, a razor, a toothbrush and toothpaste went in first. A glance at his jagged fingernails had him tossing in one of those little travel manicure kits that came with clippers, file, and little scissors. Bleach and gel for Spike, plus a comb. Another aisle provided a package of socks and a navy t-shirt for Spike. More bottled water and power bars, plus a bag of good old-fashioned potato chips and he figured he was set.

The clerk looked a bit put out at having to check him out, but didn't look at the card she swiped or the signature he signed on the slip. He took the plastic bags and scurried out. The street was still deserted, which oddly enough made his skin crawl. Like there were hidden eyes watching him. It was with real relief that he got back to the motel and Spike.

"Let's see what you got." Spike tore into the bags like a kid at Christmas, crowing over the bleach and gel, and frowning over the t-shirt. "Didn't have black?"

"Nope. It was dark blue, white, or yellow. Sorry." Xander sat on the bed to watch.

"Eh, can't be helped. Not too bad, anyway. Got us some useful stuff, pet. Let's get cleaned up so's we can sleep." Spike hauled him into the tiny bathroom with the hygiene products. While Spike cracked open the bleach and started doing his roots, Xander brushed his teeth. Twice, since it had been so long since he'd been able to do more than rinse his mouth with plain water. The face that stared back at him from the foggy mirror was that of a stranger. Long, shaggy hair framed a bearded, thin face. His eyes were bloodshot and a little wild. Feral, like a stray cat's.

He turned his face away, twisting the tap for the shower. He stripped off his stolen clothes and turned to find Spike with his face screwed up in the strangest expression he'd ever seen. "What's wrong?"

"Bleach. It stings. Get in an' wash up. I'll give us both a trim, an' get rid of your whiskers." He brandished the little scissors and the razor.

Smiling, Xander stepped under the spray. It couldn't be said to actually be hot, but it was warm, and sluiced away old sweat and grime. He opened the soap and shampoo, and vigorously applied both, scrubbing until his skin was red and his scalp stung. Then Spike was sliding in with him, nearly dancing in his eagerness to rinse out the bleach. It won a small laugh from Xander, who dumped a palm full of shampoo on his white hair and scrubbed. Spike stilled as the harsh chemical was washed away. "Much better. Hold still, now, gonna trim your hair up a bit."

He positioned Xander under the spray so that the water plastered his hair flat to his skull. Xander felt the cold metal against his skin as Spike snipped his hair. Then the scissors were against his cheek, trimming his beard to something shorter, that the razor would be able to scrape away easily. Once he was clean shaven, he rinsed away the bits of hair clinging to him and traded places with his lover. Fascinated, he watched as Spike gave himself a haircut, expertly wielding the scissors without the use of a mirror. When he was finished, his hair was back to the short, even length Xander remembered. He couldn't resist running his fingers through it, sighing a little wistfully. "You're gonna spackle this down with gel, aren't you? Gonna miss the curls."

"Look girly with the curls, pet. But you can wash the gel out whenever we're stopped for the day, how's that?"

"It'll have to do, I guess. C'mon, I'm about dead on my feet, here."

Water turned off, they got out and dried with the threadbare towels provided, then crawled naked into the bed. They fell asleep curled around each other, without the usual soft conversations or sex.

Xander woke up, climaxing into the cool mouth wrapped around his dick. "Holy shit," he panted, while Spike sat up, smugly licking his lips. "Feel free to wake me up like that any time."

"I will, never you worry." Spike wrapped a hand around his own erection and stroked. Xander sat up and pushed him onto his back, batting his hand out of the way, and sucked it down his throat. He'd had plenty of practice at this, and was proud to say he could take most of it, even if it left his throat a little sore afterwards. Spike tangled his hands in Xander's hair, hips bucking up into the hot suction. Xander swallowed down his offering, then crawled up to share several minutes of passionate kissing.

Eventually Spike rolled away and stood up. "Sorry, pet. Almost sundown. Gotta get dressed and find us a different car. That ugly yellow thing is too easy to spot."

"Alright."

They dressed, Spike donning the new t-shirt. The color made his eyes stand out even more vividly in his face. Xander pulled on a pair of his new socks, wiggling his toes happily in the poly-cotton blend, before pulling on his cracked boots. Spike expertly slicked his hair back with the gel, completing the restoration of his old image. Xander stuffed their few personal belongings into the stolen pack, but looked uncertainly at the wallet. "Should we leave it, you think? That guy will be calling to cancel all his cards anyway."

Spike took it and searched through it far more thoroughly than he had before. He held up a slip of paper, with a series of four digit numbers next to credit card names. "I think, before we do that, we'll be teachin' this guy a lesson. What kind of moron keeps the pin numbers, all nicely organized, in the same wallet with the cards?" He grinned gleefully. "We'll be cleanin' him out first. Need the dosh more'n he does."

Xander didn't like it, though he didn't protest. Spike would happily steal whatever he wanted, and feed on whomever he wanted now. Xander didn't have that option, and would need money to buy food. It was a little disturbing to realize how much he'd changed. Before, he would have pitched a fit at the thought of stealing the packs, not to mention cleaning out the guy's accounts. He would also have been looking for a sharp piece of wood about now, instead of wondering if he could convince Spike to snack on gang members and drug dealers.

Resolutely shoving aside those thoughts as unproductive, he shouldered the pack and followed Spike out the door. They didn't go back to the yellow monstrosity, but checked out and started walking. The heat of the day still lingered, making the flannel shirt a little uncomfortable to wear. But its long sleeves concealed the scars on his arms from fighting and feeding Spike for a year. With the sun down, the town seemed to be closing up already, with only a few cars cruising the streets and most of the shops turning off their lights. They walked to a residential area and found a car, older but well kept, parked on the street. It wasn't locked, and the heavy perfume smell suggested it belonged to an old woman. Spike hotwired it, and cruised sedately around town, stopping at every ATM available. They ended up with a whole lot of cash.

Once again, as soon as they were on the highway, he floored it. Xander flipped down the visor to study his face in the little mirror on the back of it. He looked a little less wild with his face shaved and his hair trimmed. But he was pale, and his cheekbones stood out in his face from the extremely low fat diet he'd been forced onto. A long, thin scar ran down the left cheek, probably from that first fight so long ago. He hadn't noticed it that morning, probably because the thick facial hair had covered it. "I look like an ex-con."

"Not hardly, pet. Don't have no prison tattoos, for one. Look a bit dangerous, with the scars, but not like a convict."

"I guess. Least I don't look like an inbred mountain man anymore. We going to L.A.?"

"Yeah. Big city, plenty of places to lay low for a bit. Maybe ask around, see if there's anyone hunting us. Got a few contacts I can talk to."

"Do you really think they'll try to get us? I mean, we pretty much ruined their games, didn't we? What would be the point?"

"You said it yourself. We buggered their games, pet. They were likely makin' a handy profit of some sort, an' that's gone now. Their rep is gonna be shot, and they'll be lookin' for payback. They'll need to, if they're gonna save face. Ain't never seen those types before, with the gray skin. Could be they're big on the magic, could be they just got the couple tricks. Either way, I wanna know what we're dealin' with."

"Oh. Makes sense, I guess." He shot a mischievous look at his lover. "Think we should drop in on Deadboy? Last I heard before I left, he was gonna set up shop in L.A."

"Not funny, pet. Won't be dropping in on him, 'less it's dire. And it'd have to be pretty fuckin' dire, at that."

Laughing, Xander scooted over on the bench seat to tuck himself under Spike's arm. It felt good to be free. To be clean, and have the night wind blowing his hair around from the open window. His stomach growled, pointing out that it had been a long time since he'd given it anything. Not moving from his comfortable spot, he dragged the pack onto the seat to dig out a couple power bars and a bottle of water. Even the dry, bland flavor of the bars tasted like heaven compared to what he'd been eating, and the water helped wash it down when it stuck in his throat. His stomach cramped for a while, having real food in it, but he just curled deeper into Spike and rode it out.

The dirty yellow smudge of L.A. was visible against the night sky several miles before they reached the city limits. He could taste the difference in the air, pollution from millions of cars making it bitter. Even that was welcome, signaling to his mind that they were out of the damp caverns. Spike navigated the city streets calmly, seeming to know exactly where he was going. They ended up in what looked like some kind of red light district, garish neon lights proudly advertising various adult shows or stores, and scantily clad women walking provocatively up and down the streets. Xander found himself flushing painfully at some of the suggestions called out to them as they drove by.

Spike parked the car in front of one of the adult stores, and horrified Xander by dragging him in. He was a small town boy, whatever naughty things he'd been getting up to with the evil undead, and the offered merchandise nearly made his brain implode. Granted, he'd had his share of porn mags, even gotten hold of a couple of movies, but compared to the items on display, they'd all been very tame.

He knew Spike was laughing at him, but refused to lift his eyes from the floor long enough to glare. Spike talked briefly with the guy behind the counter, then took his hand to lead him into a back room. Cautiously lifting his eyes, Xander was relieved to see bare walls. "Why are we here?" he whined.

Spike pushed open a door to reveal a set of steps going down. "Know the bloke that owns the place. Let's me use the basement if I want. Won't be bothered here, pet." He used his hold on Xander's hand to tug him down.

Contrary to what he'd feared, the basement wasn't much. Concrete floor, cinder block walls. But there was a bed and a small bathroom. Spike flopped down on the bed, hands clasped behind his head. "Got someone bringin' us fresh clothes, pet. And a new ride. You gonna be up for hittin' a few demon bars tonight?"

"Sure." Xander shrugged easily. "I'll let you do the talking, and just kill anything that tries to cause trouble." He sat down next to his lover. "Um, what happens after we find out what we want to know?"

"Whaddya mean, luv?"

Xander ducked his head, eyes lowered again. "I mean, are we gonna stay in L.A., go somewhere else, or.... Do you even want me to stay with you?" He twisted the fabric of his stolen shirt nervously. "We never really talked about it; what we'd do after we got out. Just wanna know...what you want."

"Seems to me, that's mostly up to you," Spike said evenly. "Like to keep you with me, pet. But I'm a vampire. You're a White Hat. You gonna be right with me eatin' people? Cause I will. I don't do that pig's blood shit Peaches does."

"No, I know. I – I was sort of hoping? That maybe you could, y'know, stick to drug dealers and gang members, people like that." He looked up hopefully, hands stilling in the twisted fabric. "Cause I DO want to stay with you, but you're right. It'd tear me up if you started eating soccer moms."

Spike sat up and pressed his face into Xander's neck. "Could do that, pet. For you, I could do that. But don't you wanna go back to your friends?"

Xander shivered as cool breath fanning over his skin. He untwisted his fingers to pull Spike's arms around him. "I'd like to stop in, let them know I'm alright. But I don't think I want to stay. They wouldn't understand anything that's happened to me, and they would expect me to be their Xander-shaped friend." He made a face, a little disgusted at his own memories of himself. "The guy that cracks the jokes and gets the donuts."

"You're better than that, pet. Deserve better."

"Yeah. Besides, I know that if I go back, that's it. I'll get sucked into the world saving gig, and one of these days, it'll kill me. I'll never go anywhere, do anything else. And there's so much I want to do and see."

"Show you the world, pet. Anyplace you want to go."

"Even Egypt?"

"Anyplace but that," Spike amended. "My arse is still cooked from the bloody sand."

Laughing out of pure relief, Xander twisted to give Spike a kiss. His lover deepened it, hands working their way into Xander's clothes.

They were interrupted by loud footsteps clomping down the stairs. A heavyset guy with flaming red hair came down and deposited a large paper bag on the bed next to them. After giving them a leer that made Xander's skin crawl, he left.

"Suppose this'll wait a bit," Spike said regretfully. "Let's see what we got here." He dumped the bag out onto the bed. Two pairs of boots, two pairs of black jeans, two black t-shirts, and a waist length black leather jacket were sorted out between them. Xander raised an eyebrow over the all black color scheme, but since it all fit perfectly, there wasn't much he could say. Besides, he liked the leather jacket.

Once they were both changed, Spike led the way back upstairs. Xander again kept his eyes averted from the merchandise, feeling his face heat. Spike whispered something to the clerk before they left the store.

The granny car was gone, replace by a sleek little sport's car. Xander was completely unsurprised to note that it was black. Spike drove them to another seedy part of town, one that lacked only the adult entertainment places. In their place were bars. They parked and Spike turned to him. "Listen, pet. We'll be in a lotta places where humans ain't too popular. Stick close to me, an' don't make eye contact with anyone. Don't gotta back down if anyone starts hassling you, but we're lookin' for info, not a brawl."

"Not a problem. Like I said before, I'll let you do the talking."

"Good boy," Spike grinned, ruffling his hair.

Xander smacked his leg. "I'm not a dog!" He leaned over to collect a kiss, then they both got out of the car.

In the bar, Xander took a fast look around, noting the number and species of demons present. Having faced down most of the types of demons that were there in the arena, he felt a little better about being there. More confident in his ability to handle things if they got ugly, he plastered himself against Spike's side and kept his eyes no higher than chest level in an effort to avoid that happening.

Spike spoke with the demon behind the bar in a rapid spate of a language Xander didn't know. While they were talking, Xander uneasily noticed a Mer'keth demon drawing closer. At seven feet tall, it easily towered over both him and Spike. He'd fought one of them a couple months back. Neither slow nor fast, their main strength lay in their tongue, which had a tiny dart in the tip. They could shoot it out like a frog catching a fly to deliver the venom, which paralyzed but didn't kill. They preferred their meals fresh.

Xander clearly recalled how it felt to wrench the dangerous muscle free of the mouth, and shivered.

His reaction caught Spike's attention and the vampire glanced over his shoulder. "What?! Bit busy here, if you don't bloody mind!"

"Don't want humans here," the Mer'keth growled. "Get rid of it."

"Boy belongs to me, an' he ain't goin' nowhere. Ain't bothering nobody neither, so piss off." Spike turned completely around, arms crossed over his chest.

The Mer'keth lifted its chin and dropped its lower jaw a bit – fighting stance, for one of their kind. "Get rid of it, or I will."

"Touch my boy, an' I'll let him kill you," Spike promised, eyes flashing golden.

Laughter greeted this statement. Not just from the Mer'keth, but from every other demon in the place. The bartender spoke in English so that everyone could understand. "If you human kill Toby, I buy it drink! It welcome here all time!"

Heaving an exaggerated sigh, Spike turned to face the bar. "Now look, we come in here lookin' for a bit of news an' a drink. If I let my boy kill this wanker, I want no more tussles. Got business, yeah?"

"Agreed, vampire," the bartender said loudly.

Spike nudged Xander lightly. "Kill him, pet."

Xander dropped to his knees and drove his fist straight up. Like humans, Mer'keth had external genitalia located at the apex of their legs. And like any guy getting one in the nuts, the Mer'keth dropped, hands clasped over its abused organs, mouth gaping in a silent scream. Xander reached into its mouth and once again got to hear and feel the wet rip of a tongue wrenched from a mouth.

Quickly getting to his feet, he walked around to the backside, where short, dull spikes stuck out down the spine. He located the small area in the middle of the back where there were no spikes, aimed, and drove the toe of one boot into it. It was the one vulnerable spot on the whole body, and a hit there was the only way to really kill them. Any other injury would heal, and missing limbs regenerate in time.

The Mer'keth toppled lifeless to the floor without ever having made a sound. Xander dropped the tongue on the body, then went and leaned against Spike again.

Silence reigned for a full minute. Then the bartender spoke again. "What you human called?"

"Alexander. Gonna buy my boy that drink, then?" Spike challenged.

"What you drink, Alexander?"

Xander tilted his head consideringly. It was a bar, so alcohol would be appropriate. On the other hand, he wasn't any kind of drinker and anyway, didn't want his head fogged. "Soda. Nothing diet."

The bartender chuckled. "You funny human. Drink soda!" A can of cola was pushed over the scarred bar, water beading down the sides.

Taking the drink with a nod, Xander popped the top and sipped, tuning out the conversation that Spike resumed. Around the bar, the low thrum of other conversations started up, the demons apparently accepting his right to be here. He wasn't really happy about the confrontation, even though he'd won without much effort. Demons, he knew, talked. A lot. It wouldn't take long before word of this incident got around. He knew, even if no one else did, that the only reason he'd won so easily was that the Mer'keth (Toby? What kind of demon name was Toby?) hadn't considered him a threat. Future challengers would be forewarned. He sincerely hoped Spike had a plan for dealing with that, because he didn't have a clue.

Spike concluded his talk with the bartender. Giving Xander a signal to stay put, he started moving around the tables. Xander sipped his drink, the super sweetness of it sitting heavily in his stomach, and kept an eye on his progress. No one seemed inclined towards more violence, however, and Spike rejoined him half an hour later. "No luck, pet. Let's try somewhere else."

Abandoning his can, Xander left with him. They went immediately to the bar directly across the street, where Spike again roamed the bar. Xander didn't get anything more than a few dirty looks, so either this crowd didn't care as much, or someone had already come and told the tale. Spike again had no luck finding out anything about their former captors. They hit two more bars after that, all with the same lack of results. Frustrated, Spike drove furiously into another part of the city. So far, Xander wasn't impressed with what he'd seen of L.A. It seemed to have an overabundance of places that were run down and dangerous, where nice people didn't dare set foot in.

Spike got out alone and stalked halfway down the block from where he'd parked. As Xander watched, a young punk ghosted out of the shadows towards Spike. Wearing a red bandanna on his head and torn, baggy jeans halfway down his ass, the punk made a curious gesture at his lover. Spike grabbed the guy by the throat and pressed him up against the wall. His face went to the kid's neck, and Xander knew Spike was feeding.

It only took a couple minutes, and then Spike was ripping his face away. Dragging the body behind him, he walked to the middle of the street, yanked up a manhole cover, and dropped the body down into the sewers. He came back to the car and got in, licking a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth. "Alright?"

Xander stared straight ahead. "Fine. Well, not fine. Should I feel...." He shook his head. "Forget it. Let's go back, okay?"

"Fine," Spike snapped. He threw the car into gear and peeled out, tires squealing on the pavement.

They got back to the sex shop, and Xander followed Spike in without even noticing the merchandise. Down in the basement, Spike flung his duster over the bed and whirled on him. "Go on an' say it."

"Say what?" Arms crossed defensively, Xander leaned against the wall.

"Yer pissed that I ate that kid. Go on an' say it, then. Thought you could handle it, long as I was choosy, an' now yer goin' back on that. So just fuckin' say so!"

"Spike, I have no idea what you're talking about. I can honestly say that I've changed more than I had thought, because you killing that guy didn't bother me at all."

"Liar." Spike planted his fists on his hips. "Could smell you bein' angry when I got in the car."

Xander pushed away from the wall and stalked towards his lover. "You could smell that I was angry? Fine, I was angry. But more than that, I was jealous. Go ahead and laugh, but there it is." He jabbed an angry finger into Spike's chest. "How would you feel, seeing your – your lover! All pressed up against somebody else like that?"

"Pet. Xander. Was just feedin', nothin' more," Spike soothed, abruptly flipping from furious to conciliatory.

Xander shrugged off his jacket and yanked the t-shirt over his head. "Just feeding?" He held out his arms to display the multitude of bite scars mottling his flesh. "Just feeding? Sorry, Spike, guess I don't see it that way. The way I see it, there was this random, stupid punk filling a need for you. One that I've been filling for the last year." He poked Spike in the chest, hard. "And yes, I know I can't do that anymore. You can't feed off of me and keep us both healthy, I know that!" Another hard poke. "Which doesn't help, and actually made me wish for half a second to be back in the Below, if only so that I could. Instead I'm back to being the useless sidekick that always needs to be taken care of." He turned away. "So sorry you were upset." He stomped into the tiny bathroom and slammed the door.

Which burst open a second later. "We ain't finished, princess!" Spike picked him up by the arms and pressed him against the wall above the toilet. "Who the fuck says you're useless?"

"Experience," Xander hissed. "I was useless before the Below, and I'm useless now. You don't need me, Spike. Not anymore. Seeing you feed just made that obvious. And that fight in the bar? That only went so easy because no one expected me to know how to fight. Next time we go out, there'll be someone looking to take out the uppity human, and they'll know I've got some moves. It'll be one fight after another, and you know it." His arms crossed defensively and he looked away.

"So. Fucking. What!" Spike shook him hard enough to rattle his teeth. "Who the hell are you to tell me what I need, eh? What I need is someone I can bloody trust at my back. What I need is a lover who gives as good as he gets. What I need is a smart mouthed, whiskey-eyed boy to keep me on my toes. An' I don't give a toss about how many morons think they can take you. Far as I'm concerned, it's all in good fun. I like fighting, remember. Least I do under my own circumstances."

Their eyes locked. The air was practically vibrating with tension, and something else that neither of them were quite ready to admit to. Eventually Spike let him slide down the wall to stand on his own feet. That he was straddling the toilet didn't seem to matter. Cupping his cheek, Spike pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "What I need is you, pet."

Licking his lips, Xander rested his hands flat on Spike's chest. He could feel the muscles twitching under his touch, and smiled a little. "You sure?"

"'Course. Woulda ditched ya soon as we got out, otherwise. Were you really jealous?" Spike pressed their foreheads together, nose-tips barely brushing.

"Big time. You were all with the full body touching. Can't you keep a little distance?"

"Keeps the thrashing about to a minimum that way, pet. But I could give it a go."

He kissed Spike this time. "Nah. I'm overreacting. And you've already given me a lot, I'll get used to it. Um, Spike?"

"Yeah?" Spike flexed his fingers, digging them into Xander's hips a little.

"I – I need to pee. Not to ruin the moment, or anything, but that half a can of soda wants out."

Spike kissed his nose. "In the right spot, then." He stepped back. "Got some stuff in the other room. Come out when you're done."

"Kay." Left on his own, Xander hastily unbuttoned his jeans to relieve himself. Tucking himself back in when he'd finished, he washed his hands and went to join Spike. One thing he'd learned about the vampire, or maybe it was just the whole male thing, was that no matter how heated the fight, grudges were not held afterwards. Where a girl would have made him grovel for weeks after a blow up like that, Spike considered the matter settled and forgotten. Not because it hadn't mattered, but because he just figured the air was clear and would move on.

Spike was standing over by the base of the steps. On the floor beside him was a pile of weapons that Xander had somehow failed to notice when they'd come down. Seeing his puzzled look, Spike explained. "Gotta finish your training, pet. Didn't have any weapons before, did we? We'll start with staff work. Long staff an' short. Can use lot's a things to improvise a staff, bit of pipe, tree branch and whatnot, so it's a good, all purpose sort of weapon. An' most things get a bit testy when you beat it about the head."

Xander caught the long, straight wooden staff he was tossed. "Okay. Just keep in mind, I won't heal like I used to. Try not to put me out of commission."

"Oi!" Spike gave him an affronted look. "Ain't never hurt you that bad, pet. Not gonna, neither."

Grinning, Xander stepped up, hands mirroring Spike's hold on the weapon.

 

*

Xander woke slowly, feeling the cool body coiled around his. For once, he was awake before his lover, which gave him a chance to think. They'd been free for a whole two weeks. They'd been spending the first half of the nights since they'd come to LA cruising demon haunts, trying to find anyone who knew anything about the games, but with no luck. They had found information on Angel that revealed the older vampire was running some kind of detective agency, saving people and such. Spike had sneered when they'd heard that. Frankly, so had Xander.

None of which was all that important to Xander at the moment. What was important was the offer/request Spike had made two nights ago. They had tumbled into bed after a training session, both of them seriously worked up after being so physical with each other. Spike had rolled him to his back, shoved his legs apart, and reached between his legs to touch the entrance to his body. 'Wanna be in you, pet. Feel you, tight an' hot around me.' Xander had frozen, somehow shocked beyond measure at the suggestion. It wasn't something that had come up before. In all the months that they'd been lovers, that was one act that hadn't been mentioned, much less one they'd done.

Spike had felt him freeze up and let it go with a disappointed look. One Xander had strove to dispel, with a great deal of success, he was proud to say. Now, however, he had time to think about it. So what did he think? Mostly yuck. Eating regular food again meant he was regularly expelling waste. On the other hand, Spike wasn't all that squeamish. And if Xander was, he knew for a fact that there were ways around that. He'd seen them for sale upstairs the few times he'd been brave enough to lift his eyes from the floor.

So did he want to do it? Have Spike inside of him? The answer from his little head was yes. Not to mention that thinking of that act made him want to return the favor on Spike. If the vampire's mouth felt as good as it did, how much better would his ass feel? He wanted to find out.

But there was still the yuck factor to deal with. Was it yucky enough that he would go through the undoubtedly embarrassing experience of cleaning first? Little head and big head wavered on that, finally leaning towards yes. Besides, Spike would do his best to make it as easy as possible. He knew that without a doubt.

Mostly decided in favor of at least trying it once, Xander squirmed around in Spike's arms until they were face to face. Rather than wake Spike in an erotic manner, he shook him. "Spike. Spike, wake up. I want to talk to you about something."

Stirring slightly, Spike opened sleep fogged eyes. "Huh?"

"Wake up. Wanna talk."

"Can it wait? 'm tired, pet." His eyes closed again.

"Wanna talk about sex." That got a reaction, eyes opening wide, mouth curving into a lusty smile. "Talk, Spike, not have. At least, not just yet."

Smile dimming, Spike sat up and flicked on the overhead light. "Hell, pet. You woke me up to tease me with just talk?"

"No!" Xander sat up and hugged his knees. "I don't wanna tease you. But I was thinking about what you wanted the other night. The being inside me thing."

"You don't want it. What's to talk about?" Spike fumbled over the bed, finding his jeans and the cigarettes he'd started smoking again in the pocket. Lighting one, he leaned against the headboard.

"See, that's just it. I was thinking about it, and I maybe want to try it."

"Maybe want to try it? Not the most rousing endorsement, pet."

"Yeah, well, sorry. It's just...somehow, when I was thinking about dating guys, that never entered my head as something to do with a guy." He blushed. "Call me slow, but it just never occurred to me. Now that it has, I sort of think ooh, yeah! And sort of think ooh, gross! All at the same time. So I maybe want to try it, but there is a serious gross out factor that must be addressed first." His eyes dropped, too embarrassed even hinting at it to keep looking at Spike.

"Just so we're clear," Spike said in a gentle voice. "You wanna try it, only as long as we clean you out first?"

"Y-yeah. So...is that okay? I guess we could skip that if it's too much of a hassle."

"Sometimes I forget how much an innocent you still are." Xander looked up at that, to see a gentle, but still wicked smile in Spike's eyes. "Not a hassle, pet. Even that can feel good, if it's done right." The half smoked cigarette was tossed into the far corner. "When were you thinking you wanted to try this?"

"Uh, now? Before I lose my nerve?"

"Then just wait here a mo' an' I'll be back." Not bothering to put on jeans, Spike raced up the stairs to the store above them.

Xander continued to hug his knees, suddenly unsure about going ahead with this. What if it hurt? What if he didn't like it, but Spike wanted to do it all the time? He smacked his forehead sharply on his knees. He was being ridiculous. If he didn't like it, they wouldn't do it.

He looked up when Spike came dashing down the steps, his bare feet slapping against the concrete. He held a box in one hand and a bottle of something in the other. The bottle was tossed onto the bed and Xander was tugged up to his feet. "Let's get to it, pet. Think you'll like this." Bearing more resemblance to an excited puppy than a fierce Master Vampire, Spike fairly wiggled his way into the small bathroom with Xander in tow.

Spike went straight for the shower stall, turning on the water and getting it set to a warm but not hot temperature. He ripped open the box to reveal a rubber bag with a long hose at one end, topped with a slightly thicker nozzle. Xander gulped audibly. Spike was on him instantly, petting and soothing. "Relax, luv. Nothin' bad is gonna happen here. Let's get in the shower, okay?" Rubber bag seeming forgotten, Spike coaxed him under the water, kissing and touching him all over.

Xander started to forget why they were there, lost in the feeling of Spike touching him. Spike's hands had the mysterious power to drive away pain, fear, and despair, so driving away sexual anxiety was nothing. He sighed into Spike's mouth, barely aware of being guided to his knees. He jerked, however, startled when hard plastic nudged at his backside. Spike raised a single eyebrow in question. Xander leaned forward, lifting his bottom. "Go ahead." His hands clenched involuntarily on Spike's back as the plastic was pushed into him. A moment later, Xander felt warm water filling him. Then Spike's hands were on him again, pinching his nipples, stroking his cock, making him feel nothing but pleasure.

Soon, however, his belly started to feel tight. He had the sensation of urgently needing to void, which somewhat dampened his arousal. "Spike?"

"'s okay, pet. Almost done," Spike soothed. A moment later Xander felt his hands at his backside, sliding the nozzle out of him. He clamped down, not wanting to release that in the shower. "No, Xan, let go. Best place for it, yeah? Can wash up real good right away." Burying his face in Spike's shoulder, he relaxed. Warm water flowed out of him for quite some time before tapering off. Whatever eroticism Spike had hoped to inject into this hadn't worked. His dick was as soft as it could get, and he was really regretting this whole enema idea.

Spike was smart enough not to mention any of that. He washed Xander carefully, rinsed him, then shut off the water. They both received a cursory rub down with a towel before Spike guided him back to the bed. "Didn't like that much," he observed.

"Less than I did the physical the doctor gave me when I joined the swim team." Xander couldn't quite manage to look at him.

Spike prodded him into laying on his back in the middle of the bed. "Forget about it then, pet. We'll move on to something far better."

Xander reached up to tangle his fingers in Spike's wet hair. He used the grip to pull his lover down on top of him, already smiling. "Better is good. C'mere and make it better."

With a little growl, Spike kissed him, tongue sweeping in to claim his mouth. Xander relaxed into it, letting the familiar feeling sweep away his previous discomfort. Before long, he was hard and aching, arching his body to rub against Spike's. His lover kissed down his neck, sucking hard in a few spots to leave passion marks. Making a frustrated noise, Xander heaved to the side so that he was on top and claimed Spike's mouth again, grinding down to get the contact he wanted.

Spike rolled them back over, using his knee to part Xander's legs. Settling between them, he dove down to suck the tip of Xander's cock into his mouth. Xander yelled, thrusting up hard. Thoroughly distracted, he only spread his legs wider when he felt a finger touching his hole. When it pushed inside, however, he stilled. Spike lifted his head, sliding his finger in as deep as it would go. "Okay?" he asked, twisting his finger around.

Xander looked down, admiring the sight of Spike's puffy lips poised so close to the tip of his erection. "Different. Not bad. Not all that – GAH!" His hips jerked, seeking out more of the intense sensation Spike had just produced. "Do that again!"

"My pleasure, pet." Smirking wickedly, Spike crooked his finger, brushing the little bundle of nerves again and again. Xander clutched at the bedding, rolling his hips into the feeling. Although he was soon far too out of it to realize, he was fucking himself on Spike's finger. A second one was pushed in, to his loud approval. "More, luv?"

"Fuck, yes! More moremore..."

Chuckling low in his throat, Spike lowered his mouth back onto his cock, sucking and swirling his tongue around the tip. His fingers slid in and out, spreading slick in his passage. When he was on the verge of release, Spike sat up and stilled his fingers. "Ready for more?"

"Jesus, Spike! Don't tease, so close!" Xander wailed. He started to reach for his dick, fully intending to finish what his lover had apparently abandoned.

Spike batted his hand away. "No you don't. You'll come with me inside you, an' not before." He pulled his fingers free and tilted the bottle over his leaking prick. Clear fluid drizzled onto it, and he spread it over the entire length. The bottle was tossed aside and immediately forgotten. Spike crouched over him, one hand helping to line himself up, the other on the bed by Xander's shoulder to support himself. "Want me in you, pet? Last chance to say no."

Some of the lust fog cleared from Xander's brain. Meeting Spike's eyes squarely, he pulled his knees up to his chest, holding himself open. "Do it. Want to feel you inside me, Spike."

Their eyes stayed locked as Spike pushed in. When the head of his cock popped through the tight ring of muscle, Spike let go to use both hands to hold himself up. Xander stiffened, hands automatically going to clutch at Spike's arms. "Relax, love," Spike crooned. "Relax, and let me in."

"Little bit bigger than your fingers, Spike! Shit," he panted, trying to force his muscles to relax. His body automatically tried to push out the intruder, which actually seemed to let Spike slide in further. Going with that, he pushed out on purpose.

"That's it," Spike hissed, slowly sinking in until his balls rested against Xander's ass. He held still, arms faintly trembling with the effort of controlling himself.

Xander took a deep breath, then another. Gradually he felt his body adjust and relax its punishing grip. The burning pain eased up, and he felt the urge to move. So he did, just a little, rolling his hips experimentally. It didn't hurt, and he got the faint echo of the amazing feeling that Spike's fingers had produced. So he did it again.

Spike took that as his cue to start a slow glide out. Sliding back in, he adjusted the angle slightly so that he was sliding directly over Xander's sweet spot. Xander yelled, legs suddenly winding around his waist to jerk him in fast and hard. Spike growled, and let himself move, pounding Xander's ass.

Xander was loving it. Every slide in or out felt beyond amazing, but he especially loved the part where Spike bottomed out in him. Beyond the crude tumble that Faith had given him, he'd never felt what it was like to be physically joined with someone. And he liked it, liked having Spike being a part of him. It was the most intense feeling he'd ever had, and he didn't want it to ever end. He jerked Spike's head to his for a kiss, twining his tongue with his lover's in an effort to be even closer. Spike, impossibly, sped up, moving harder inside him. In response Xander deepened the kiss, feeling the slight pain as their lips mashed together. The copper tang of blood filled his mouth, and he wondered vaguely which of them had split their lip. Didn't matter though. The faster pace was resulting in his approaching orgasm. He was half disappointed, half eager, not wanting it to end but desperate for release.

He clutched at Spike's shoulders, nails unwittingly leaving deep furrows in the pale flesh. His hips tilted, he tore his mouth away from Spike's, and sank his teeth into his shoulder, muffling his shout as he spurted warm seed between their bellies. His muscles clamped down, intensifying the feeling of Spike's cock inside him, making his orgasm even more powerful. Spike threw his head back, hips jerking wildly. With a roar, he came, filling Xander with cool semen that he could actually feel flooding him. His body spasmed again in response, a mini-orgasm that made him shiver.

Spike slowly relaxed, letting his weight rest on Xander. He wasn't complaining, thoroughly content to continue with the closeness. Although his whole body felt sated and limp, he made the effort to keep his legs wrapped around Spike's waist, keeping him from moving. He nuzzled the shoulder he'd bitten, licking the bruised patch of skin as it healed. "Mmm."

"Feel good?" Spike mumbled, face resting against Xander's neck.

"Mm hmm." He clenched his butt muscles, feeling the softening organ inside him twitch. Who knew his ass was so sensitive?

Spike licked a path from his neck up to his mouth, and they shared languid kisses for several long minutes. Finally, Spike lifted his head. "That was bloody amazing, pet. Not hurt, are you?"

Xander stretched his arms above his head, careful to keep his legs in place. "Not at the moment. I'm sure I'll feel that later, though. You have to beat up anyone who laughs at me for not being able to sit down."

"Gladly." Spike cupped his hip, thumb rubbing soothing circles on the sweat dampened flesh. "Gonna want to do that again?"

Licking his lips, Xander again clenched his butt muscles. "Now?"

"Wanna be able to walk later?"

Pushing his hips up, he pulled Spike's head down to his. "Walking," he muttered against his lips, "is vastly overrated."

*

Wincing, Xander pulled his jeans up and fastened them. "Tell me again why I let you do that? God, my ass is sore!"

"Weren't complainin' a couple hours ago, pet." Spike stomped into his boots, bending over to tie them.

Xander eyed the denim encased rear speculatively, then gave in to impulse and grabbed it. "Couple hours ago it felt good. And just how many times did you come in me?"

Spike tossed a grin over his shoulder, wiggling his bottom in Xander's grip. "Four, pet. Kept telling me to, didn't you?"

"And you listened to me...why? Never mind. When we get back, I fully intend to return the favor. Don't know how sore I can make your ass, with the vamp healing and all, but I'm gonna do my best." He slid his hands into the back pockets, digging his fingers in a little. "Wanna see if it feels as good from that end of things, so to speak."

Spike straightened, leaning back and rubbing against Xander's chest. "We can do that. Later. Should be the last night of this. Either we'll get something useful, or we've run out of places to ask at."

Xander pulled his hands free of Spike's pockets so he could wrap them around his waist. "Hate to suggest it, but if we don't find out anything here, we might want to consider heading to Sunnydale. Giles is a Watcher. They've got loads of books about demons, so there might be something there. If nothing else, the fact that they'll take humans who do okay against a demon should make him want to cooperate with us."

"Doubt the bastards would be daft enough to take the Slayer, pet."

"But Giles won't know that. And with luck, he'll be angry enough that they took me to want to make sure they don't take me again. Or go after the girls."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, get your boots on so's we can go."

"Right."

A couple hours later, they left yet another bar. They'd been to so many in the last couple of weeks that Xander was starting to wonder if there were any human owned bars in the city at all. They'd had the same results as always. No one knew anything about any death match games, or who would run such a thing. Spike was bitterly unhappy. This was apparently the last place he knew of to get information, and they hadn't even gotten any leads on somewhere else to ask. Xander kept his mouth shut, knowing Spike had a wicked tongue when he was this pissed, and wouldn't have the control to keep from unleashing it on him.

Instead, he just followed his lover into the alley where they'd parked the car. They stopped dead, the car being surrounded by ten of the guards from the arena. Xander turned around, only to have the mouth of the alley blocked by several more. "Fuck. Where did they come from?" he hissed.

"Dunno. Portal, maybe. Could be they were waitin' in the sewers, too. Don't matter, pet. Let's try to clear a path to the car, mow the fuckers down with it. Watch those bloody staffs, ends are sharp."

Xander dropped into a fighting stance with Spike at his back. The guards closed in, and the fight was on. They both fought furiously, each of them taking out their share of the guards. Xander managed to wrest one of the staffs from a downed guard, which helped somewhat. But they were badly outnumbered, and more seemed to be appearing every time they killed one. They weren't making any headway towards either the car or the mouth of the alley. Hearing Spike cry out, Xander whirled. His lover had been impaled through the belly with one of the staffs.

Hatred roared through his veins. Standing over Spike, he spun the staff in his hands, sweeping the legs out from under three of the demons. More closed in, eerily silent, and Xander knew that this was it. There were too many for him to deal with, especially with only a couple weeks training with weapons.

Tires squealed, and the alley was flooded with the bright glare of headlights as a car roared down the alley, coming to a stop just next to Xander. He stared in astonishment at Angel. "What the fuck!"

Angel leaned over and opened the door. "Get in!"

Xander didn't waste any time. He made another sweep with the staff to knock over the stunned guards, bent, and hauled Spike up and into the car. He dove in next to his unconscious lover and slammed the door. "Go go go!"

Angel threw the car into reverse and peeled out of the alley, mowing down a few more guards with teeth rattling thumps. When they had a little distance between them and the alley, Xander anxiously ripped open Spike's shirt. The hole through his stomach was a couple inches in diameter, and went all the way through. Fortunately, it was well below the heart, and a little too far to the side to have damaged his spine. "Fuck! He needs blood, Angel. Fast."

"I've got blood at my place. Some human, for emergencies," Angel said tersely. "We'll be there shortly."

Xander shut up and held on, clutching Spike protectively to his chest. They arrived at Angel's place within a few minutes. Xander carried Spike in, through what looked like an office of some kind, and down into a basement apartment. He laid Spike out on the couch, carefully removing the precious duster. The inside was coated with blood, but the tip of the staff hadn't punctured it. Spike would be pleased when he woke up.

Angel appeared with a towel covered bowl. Removing the towel showed half a dozen bags of human blood. Xander grabbed one and tore open the corner. Very carefully, he pried open Spike's mouth to drizzle it in. Spike swallowed automatically, face shifting to show fangs. Xander kept pouring until the bag was empty. Then placed the next against Spike's mouth unopened, and was relieved when the vampire instantly bit, draining it dry. All six bags went down his throat, and Xander checked his wound again. It had stopped bleeding, and formed a thin layer of skin that dimpled in the middle, showing that it hadn't healed all the way through. Xander wavered for only a moment, then pressed his wrist to Spike's mouth.

Angel protested. "Xander, no! He'll drain you!" He reached out to try to remove Xander's arm.

Xander planted his free hand in the other vampire's chest. "He won't." Wincing, he felt Spike bite down. "He stops in time. Just...let me get some fresh into him. And then I'll answer what I'm sure are a million questions." Angel stopped reaching, but didn't back away. After about a minute, Xander started to feel light headed, and pulled his arm away. Spike released him at once, face shifting back to human. He was still after that, not even his eyes moving with dreams. The wound looked marginally better, and Xander nodded to himself, fingers pressed to the puncture wounds to halt the bleeding.

"I'll get some bandages," Angel murmured. "And then, Xander, we will talk."

"Already said I would, Angel." Angel left and returned a moment later carrying a roll of gauze. He wrapped Xander's wrist tightly, then sat back on the coffee table. Xander leaned back, body protectively covering Spike's vulnerable chest. "Okay, ask your questions."

"Simple, really. I want to know what's going on. You've been missing for the better part of a year. Your car was abandoned up in Oxnard, and you were reported missing when you didn't show up for work for three days in a row. There is absolutely no sign of you anywhere, no matter how hard Buffy or I looked. Then about a week ago, I start hearing that Spike is in town and asking questions about some kind of gladiator games, and that he's got a human named Alexander in tow. I admit, I didn't connect that with you until Cordy had a vision. Care to explain?" He did that raised eyebrow thing. On Spike it was sexy. On Angel, it looked like a facial tick.

"Not much, but you did save our asses, so I will." Xander closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them, he began. "I've actually been gone for a good year. I had been on a date with a guy in Oxnard, and we got attacked by a vamp. Hellmouth boy that I am, I had a stake with me. While the fledge went for my date, I staked him." He let his eyes flick to Angel's chest, imagining doing the same thing now. "After I walked my freaked out date home, I got kidnapped. Some kind of sleep spell was used, I think. I woke up in a really big cave, surrounded by dozens of demons of all kinds. Everyone there had been in a fight, and won. And all of us were taken to participate in these gladiator style fights."

He paused, drifting in memory for a moment. His eyes snapped back into focus when Angel shifted. "We were kept in cells and taken out for fights in this arena. There was a big audience up in the stands, and I don't remember ever seeing any humans up there. Spike had been taken a few days after I was, and I struck a deal with him."

"What kind of deal?" Angel asked suspiciously.

"Simple. In exchange for him teaching me how to fight, I'd let him feed on me. The stuff they fed us didn't work well for vampires. There were a couple others there besides Spike, and by the time he showed up, they were already looking thin. Starved." He shuddered, thinking of flesh ripping apart under his bare hands. "It worked out pretty well, actually. When we were moved from the first big cavern to the cells, Spike and I managed to get one together. It kept him fed and strong, and he was able to keep teaching me."

Angel shook his head. "I don't see how that's possible, Xander. Spike would have needed to feed on you almost daily in order to stay fit. You would have gotten very weak, very quickly, the amount he would have needed."

"Yeah, I know. Except that the stuff they fed us? Called it slop, cause that's what it tasted like. It worked different on me. We figured it was because it was meant for demons, and me being human, did more than just feed me. It healed me, fast. So he could feed, and after just a little while, I was fine again." Xander stood up and slipped off his jacket. Holding Angel's gaze, he tugged his t-shirt over his head. He heard a muffled curse, and smiled grimly. "It healed me fast, but for every single tiny scratch, left me a reminder. I look like a damned road map." He pulled the shirt back on. "Anyway, the fights started right after we got moved. At least two, sometimes three a day for each of us. We managed to escape fifteen days ago, and we've been trying to find out what those demons are, and anything about the fights that we can. So far, nothing. Nobody seems to know anything, which is really odd since there were so many spectators."

"Hold on. Back up a bit there. How did you escape?"

"Oh. They tried to have me and Spike fight each other. We refused. When they came in to separate us or kill us or whatever they were gonna do, we killed the guards that came in and ran off down the tunnel they used. The spectators freaked out and were all running away, and the guards were really disorganized," he laughed. "I don't think they expected any sort of resistance. We came out of the tunnels in the State Forest, and Spike seems to think it was a portal. I'd have to agree, since as soon as we left the cave, it vanished. Like a one way portal."

Angel dry washed his face with his hands. "Xander, I really need a lot more detail. Describe everything you can remember. The caves, the arena, everything."

With a sigh, Xander started over. He skipped the details of his fights and stuck to describing all the caves that they'd seen or been in, the arena, and the area around where they'd emerged. Angel seemed very interested in the amazing disappearing, reappearing walls, and the invisible force that had pushed them to and from the stalls.

"That is all very disturbing. And there are several things that don't make sense," Angel muttered, half to himself.

"Sure. Like, if they can manipulate stone to create doors and then uncreate them, why didn't they do that before Spike and I reached the wall? Or just use the force to keep us from reaching it? Or even put us to sleep, either then or in the alley tonight?" Angel looked at him in surprise. "What, you thought just cause I didn't mention the questions while telling the story, they hadn't ever occurred to me or Spike?"

"Frankly, yes."

"You really are a jerk, you know that?" Xander snapped. "I've never been as stupid as people seem to think. Impulsive, nervous, and young, but not stupid."

"Considering that you're sleeping with Spike, I'd have to question that," Angel snapped back. "Forget everything else for the moment, Xander. What are you thinking! Spike is a vampire. Evil, ruthless, and cruel. He might be willing to indulge you now, but you must know that when he gets tired of dallying with you, he will kill you."

Xander rolled his eyes. "Look, who I choose to have sex with really doesn't concern you. The fact is, I trust Spike. How far that goes, and what I trust him to do, are no one's business but mine and his."

"I'm his Sire. That makes it my business."

"Bullshit," Xander chirped cheerfully. "Bulllllshit! You didn't make him, Dru did. And that Sire business doesn't come with some sort of mystical claim attached. So try another one, 'cause that one's broken."

"Fine. I'm Buffy's friend. THAT makes it my business."

"Wrong again, Deadboy. You might be Buffy's friend but that doesn't make you mine. And it doesn't give you any say or hold on what I do. I have spent the last year fighting for a bunch of demons' sport. I've survived, and as far as I'm concerned, that's given me the right to make my own decisions. And live or not with the consequences. If it goes wrong, which for the record, it won't, I will take full responsibility. No blame for anyone else."

"I could stake him right now," Angel said softly. "Save you, and many innocent people, from him."

"I think you'd find that very difficult to do, Angel. I think you'd be surprised at what I can do," Xander said, just as quietly.

"You owe me your life, you know. I could call in that debt."

"I owe you jackshit. You saved me from Faith. Fine. That simply paid for you trying to kill me. And if you want to talk debts, how about what you owe me for getting you off your fat ass to help Buffy against the Master? And then not telling her that you were too scared to do it on your own?" Xander leaned forward, eyes narrowed. "There are plenty of things, Angel, that I could say you owe me for. But frankly, I don't care to cash any of those in. You helped us tonight, for whatever reason. Vision, you said. Fine, you did your job. You got your story. As soon as Spike wakes up, we're gone. Out of your over gelled hair."

"To do what? You've got some sort of demon organization out for your blood, and you know nothing about them. How do you plan to take them on with just the two of you?"

"Thought we'd look up Giles, see if the Watchers had anything on these guys. They write everything down, fact or fiction. He'll help, if only to make sure that Buffy isn't taken to fight in the arena."

Angel opened his mouth to speak, but footsteps clattering down the stairs stopped him. Instead, his eyes closed with something like resignation. Xander tensed, unsure of what was going on and not liking it.

Cordelia burst into the apartment, followed, unbelievably, by Wesley Wyndham-Pryce. "Angel, did you get him? Why didn't you call to tell me what happened? If I have to have the headache, buster, the least you could do – Xander! You're alive!"

"So it would seem. Hey, Cordy." He waved, not moving from his position in front of Spike. She took several steps towards him, then saw who was lying on the couch behind him.

"Oh. My. God. Isn't that Spike? What is he doing here?!" She pulled a stake from her purse. "Why haven't you dusted him, Angel?"

"Spike was hurt. As soon as he wakes up, we're leaving," Xander said loudly.

"What?! What do you mean, we? Angel, what is going on?" Cordy demanded.

"It would seem that Xander has reversed his opinion on vampires. He would rather sleep with them than stake them," Angel said.

"Nah, just Spike. Still can't stand you, Hairboy."

"Mutual, believe me."

Wesley cleared his throat. "Pardon me. While I do not understand what precisely is going on here, I cannot, in good conscience, permit William the Bloody to simply leave. I am afraid that whatever reservations Angel may have on staking him, I do not share those. Stand aside, Xander." Wesley took the stake from Cordelia's hand and advanced on the couch.

"You don't really want to try that. You really don't, weenie-boy." Xander tensed, ready and a little eager. He'd always wanted to hit this stuck up pansy.

"I do, actually." Wesley made to move around Xander. Xander stood, punched him in the stomach, and snatched the stake from his hand. Then he shoved the guy back, sending him sprawling to the floor.

Spike groaned on the couch, but Xander stayed focused on the trio in front of him. "Now look, fun as that was, I would really rather just take my lover and leave. Everyone can go on their merry ways, secure in the knowledge that it's really not likely we'll ever have to see each other again. But if you guys are gonna keep trying to hurt him, I'm going to have to get angry. And I've developed a nasty habit of breaking necks when that happens, and I really do mean that literally. Okay?"

"Xander, what is wrong with you?" Cordy tossed her head, flinging her hair over her shoulder. "You disappear for a year without a word to anyone, then you show up in a vision needing rescue. And those really hurt, mister! And now you go and punch Wes, and get all alpha male? Are you on steroids or something?"

"Nope. Just doing the wacky with the evil undead after spending a year as a gladiator in some demon arena. Deadboy can fill you in after we leave. Which should be now, I think." Satisfied that no one would be trying to dust his lover, at least for the moment, Xander tucked the stake in his waistband and turned to Spike. Who was watching him through slitted eyes. "Hey you." He couldn't help the relieved smile that crossed his face.

"Pet. Why are we here?" His eyes flicked briefly towards Angel. "Thought we weren't gonna pester the poof, less it was dire."

"You making like a vamp-kebab kind of made it dire. He ran a bunch of those guys over and got us out of there. Shared some of his emergency stash with you, so be a little nice." He held his hand out, letting Spike grasp it and use it to pull himself upright with a small grimace.

Looking around, Spike took in Angel hunched on the coffee table, Cordy standing a few feet away looking confused, and Wesley curled on the floor trying to get his breath back still. "What the fuck, pet?"

"Angel wanted the story, I gave it to him. Then the other two showed up, and the pansy on the floor was going to stake you as a public service or something. I objected, you woke up, and now we're leaving," Xander rattled off.

"Xander, have you considered that Wesley was also a Watcher? I think it might be best if you stayed, let us help you with this," Angel said, straightening with a peculiar gleam in his eyes..

"Wesley?! You want us to rely in Wesley?" Xander snorted. "Please! I was there our senior year, Deadboy. I can remember what a fuck up he is, even if you can't."

"Hey! Xander, I don't know what your problem is, but Wesley wasn't, and isn't, a fuck up," Cordy said hotly.

"Whatever. We are still leaving. We'll go and talk to Giles. Him, I know I can trust to do something."

"'scuse me, pet. Did we decide this?" Spike murmured.

"Yes, we did. We tried your way, and got diddly. And besides, those guys know we're here now, and I think we should be elsewhere. Kill two birds and all that." Xander pulled him close, one hand going to where the wound was. He could still feel a slight depression, but he knew that would be gone soon. "Get your jacket and let's go."

Angel stood up. "If you are determined to do this, I'll drive you. You don't have a car anyway."

"How 'bout no?" Spike glared. "You saved my boy, so thanks and all. But we are done here. Want nothin' t'do with you, Peaches."

"Spike, I'm not giving you a choice. Xander wants to keep you, and somebody needs to make sure you don't hurt him until he comes to his senses."

Xander squared off against the older vampire before Spike could. "Suck holy water, Angel," he snarled. "I've already told you, my life is none of your business. Watch out for yourself instead of me. Because I'll bet that a vampire with a soul would bring in a lot of spectators for those guys, and I doubt that you'd have anyone there willing to let you feed on them. I know I'd let you starve." He reached back to grab his jacket, not taking his eyes off of Angel. "Back the fuck off."

"You keep making all these threats, Xander. I wonder, you got anything to back them up?"

"Do you really wanna find out?" Xander challenged. "I wonder...you know, it's actually not that hard to kill a vamp, even without a stake. Crush the rib bones, tear a hole in the skin, and you can just reach in and poof! Should we see if that soul makes your heart a different color than black?"

Spike grabbed his arm. "Let's just go, pet. You can play with him some other time. He ain't gonna stop us from leaving." He glared at Angel. "Are you, precious?"

"No. No, I won't. Go on, leave. I fulfilled what the vision required anyway. But if you even think of trying to touch Buffy...."

Flipping him off, Spike refrained from further comment in favor of dragging Xander towards the door. No one made a move to stop them, although Xander heard Cordy's strident tones start up as soon as they were out of sight. Outside, Spike got a taxi instead of having them walk. His face was stone cold, jaw clenched so tightly that Xander was surprised not to hear chipping teeth. He kept his mouth shut until they were back in their porn store basement. As he opened his mouth to ask what was wrong, Spike beat him to it.

"We ain't going to the Hellmouth, pet. We'll find some other way of gettin' the answers we need." Spike flung his duster into the corner and began to pace.

"How? Spike, nobody knew anything. Or if they did, they didn't say anything to us, and probably tipped of those rock demons. Giles is the logical choice to ask. He'll help, I'm sure of it."

"Xan, we ain't goin'."

Xander planted his hands on his hips. "Why?"

"'Cause the bloody Slayer ain't gonna let you talk her out of tryin' to dust me, I'll have to kill her when she tries, an' then you'll be pissed and not wanna stay with me. So we ain't goin'. Rather go back to England an' kidnap a Watcher instead." Spike actually looked intrigued by that thought.

"That's stupid," Xander said quickly. He knew how big the Watcher's Council was. They did NOT need another group on their asses. But he doubted Spike would see it that way or care. "First, I have no intention of letting Buffy anywhere near you," he said instead. "And if she does find you, and refuses to just let you alone, I will make it plain to her that I won't stop you from killing her. I may still care for them, but I'm with you now. Nothing is going to change that except you not wanting me anymore. Certainly not you defending yourself, even against her. Now, can you please go arrange for a new car?" he pleaded. "Deadboy is already on the phone, talking to Giles and filling his head with God knows what. I do not want to stay in this town, when those guys have already found us and nearly killed us once already."

Spike threw his hands in the air. "Fine! We'll go. But don't blame me when I hafta kill Slutty and it's all buggered." He turned and stomped back up the stairs.

Rolling his eyes, Xander grabbed their pack and stuffed their meager possessions into it. Bag over his shoulder, he followed Spike up the stairs to wait for the car.


End file.
